The locations of the four Dwarven clans, including the Ironfists, who lived in the East are unknown. The distance between their mansions in the East and the Misty Mountains, specifically Gundabad, was said to be as great or greater than that of Gundabad's distance from the Blue Mountains in the West.[3]

Late in the Third Age, when war and terror grew in the East itself, considerable numbers of Ironfists and dwarves of the Eastern clans left their ancient homelands. They sought refuge in Middle-earth's western lands, where some of them met Frodo Baggins.[5]

The unnamed Dwarven tribes were given invented names in an early supplement.[6] While these were published before the publication of Tolkien's late note on the name of the Dwarven houses of the East, it has been suggested that the Ironfists could correspond to Thelór's tribe (as portrayed in MERP).[7]